Planning And Environmental Protection

This collection of essays examines the roles which land use planning can play in the protection of the environment. The subjects covered range from traditional concerns like pollution,nuisance and contaminated land to biodiversity and the pursuit of sustainable development, which forms the defining element of current environmental policy across the European Community and in most other developed economies. Environmental assessment is discussed, along with the succession of public law actions (Twyford Down included) by environmental activists which were necessary to convince the English courts of the full implications (and the 'direct effect') of the EC Directive 85/337. The later chapters become progressively more concerned with the planning system as the forum of negotiation and more participatory approaches (as distinct from fiscal instruments and command and control regulation) to encouraging sustainability. The contributors represent a variety of academic disciplines (law, geography, planning, environmental management) offering complementary insights into the planner's role in allocating land uses so as to minimise waste generation and energy consumption as well as maximising local amenity.

After a period of relative silence, recent years have been marked by an upswing of interest in environmental issues. The publication of the report of the World Commission on Environment and Development on 'Our Common Future' (1987) has acted as a catalyst for a revival of the environmental awareness, not only regarding local and daily pollution problems, but also -and in particular- regarding global environmental decay and threats to a sustainable development. In a recent study by W.M. Stigliani et al., on 'Future Environments for Europe' (Executive Rep~rt 15, IIASA, Laxenburg, 1989) the environmental implications of various alternative socioeconomic development pathways with respect to eleven environmental issues that could become major problems in the future are analysed. These issues include: Managing water resources in an era of climate change. Acidification of soils and lakes in Europe. Long-term forestry management and the possibility of a future shortfall in wood supply. Areas of Europe marginalized by mainstream economic and agricultural development. Sea level rise. Chemical pollution of coastal waters. Toxic materials buildup and the potential for chemical time bombs. Non-point-source emissions of potentially toxic substances. Transportation growth versus air quality. Decreasing multi-functionally of land owing to urban and suburban land development. Increasing summer demand for electricity, and the impact on air quality.

'A wonderfully international and up-to-date perspective on strategic environmental assessment of land use plans by leading experts in the field. Strategic Environmental Assessment and Land Use Planning covers not only how much such SEAs are carried out and in what context, but whether they are effective and why. It provides invaluable insights for practitioners and researchers in this rapidy evolving field' Riki Therivel, author of Strategic Environmental Assessment in Action Strategic Environmental Assessment and Land Use Planning provides an authoritative, international evaluation of the SEA of land use plans. The editors place the SEA of land use plans in context, and uniquely qualified contributors then evaluate systems in Canada, Denmark, Germany, Hong Kong, Hungary, Ireland, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, South Africa, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United States and the World Bank. These chapters provide a description of the context in each country, a case study of the use of SEA in land use planning and an evaluation of each SEA system against a set of generic criteria specially designed to anlayse different aspects of SEA. The contributors critically review each SEA system, SEA process and SEA outcome, and conclude by summarizing their findings. The editors draw the various national perspectives together in a final chapter and derive widely applicable conclusions about SEA and land use planning. This book is a core text for all students in environmental assessment, land use planning, environmental science, environmental management, development studies, geography, landscape design and law and engineering. It is also essential reading for all governments and environmental regulators, academics, researchers and environmental and planning consultants worldwide who are involvedin SEA research, practice and training.

This book examines the history and impact of Florida's Comprehensive Planning legislation. Topics include coastal zone management, solid waste planning, land use impacts, planning strategies, and more.

The need for sustainability of our region requires that we strive to find some common ground, however modest. Given that existing processes cannot cope with the current environment and development pressures - to say nothing of the pressures to come - all the current talk of the mutual interdependence of environment and the economy will remain that - just talk - unless we can find ways to better integrate environmental and land-use planning. The main objective of this report is to provoke informed discussion on this important subject.

Overview of Strategic Planning at the Environmental Protection Agency